Monday, I sent off my non-fiction zombie bug book and got a rejection the very same day. So today (Tuesday), I sent it off to another educational publishing house. Many successful writers advise that persistence pays off. To be truthful, a rejection stings less when you have plenty of other work out seeking publication; you can’t obsess over one failure.

I feel I am playing Pokemon Go – I keep throwing my ball until I catch my target.

I am not a brave person, physically or emotionally. However, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and ring a small educational publishing house about their submission guidelines. I practised my ‘professional’ voice, because I tend to sound like I am twelve.

I really like my ‘Zombie Bugs’ book and I am tired of seeing it languish in my folders.

Guess who is sending the bug book off on Monday?

Sometimes you just have to take that risk. Even if they say ‘no’ to the bug book, I have learnt something new about myself. I can be brave, with a run-up.

I have been getting a lot of action from my muse lately. I’ve always imagined my muse as a fussy (and handsome) man in Victorian-era clothing, overworked and sometimes a bit too quick with the cliché. These past two months, he has hit a gold mine of ideas.

This may be due to the pressure I’ve been putting him under with my looming yearly goal of 100 rejections. I use the Australian financial year from the 1st of July to the 31st of June. My rejections are nearly totalling 80, but I am getting to the point of the year where I won’t be hearing back about submissions until after the cut-off point.

Of course, I’ve had a few acceptances too.

However, I think my muse is hitting his stride because I’ve been working so hard at my submissions. Like any muscle, your creativity ‘grows’ with added effort and energy. Or maybe I’ve just tuned into it better. Either way, I’ve got plenty to be going on with.